NOTES 


FOR TEACHERS 




OF 


ENGLISH 


1 COMPOSITION 




BY 




G. 


R. CARPENTER 




TH 


E MACMILLAN COMP 


ANY 



NOTES FOR TEACHERS 
OF ENGLISH COMPOSITION 



SERIES OF TEXT-BOOKS ON ENGLISH 
BY PROFESSOR G. R. CARPENTER 

COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY 



PRINCIPLES OF ENGLISH GRAMMAR. For Use 

in Secondary Schools. 

ELEMENTS OF RHETORIC AND ENGLISH COM- 
POSITION. First High School Course. 

ELEMENTS OF RHETORIC AND ENGLISH COM- 
POSITION. Second High School Course. 

ELEMENTS OF RHETORIC AND ENGLISH COM- 
POSITION. First and Second High School Courses, 
in one volume. 

EXERCISES IN RHETORIC AND ENGLISH COM- 
POSITION. Advanced Course. For Use in 
Academies and Colleges. 

STUDIES IN STRUCTURE AND STYLE. To sup- 
plement the preceding. By W. T. Brewster. For 
Use in Academies and Colleges. With an Introduc- 
tion by G. R. Carpenter. 

ENGLISH LITERATURE. By Stopford A. Brooke, 
M.A. With additional chapters on English litera- 
ture (1832-1892) and on American literature, by 
G. R. Carpenter. 



NOTES FOR TEACHERS 



ENGLISH COMPOSITION 



(TO BE USED IN CONNECt^ON WITH "ELEMENTS 

OF RHETORIC AND ENGLISH COMPOSITION" 

FIRST HIGH SCHOOL COURSE) 



BY., 



Gf'R.^ CARPENTER 

PROFESSOR OF RHETORIC AND ENGLISH COMPOSITION 
IN COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY 




-^ 



^A^>^- 






5 3 J ) , ^ 



'Nt'03 gorit 
THE MACMILLAN COMPANY 

LONDON: MACMILLAN & CO., Ltd. 
I9OI 

^// rights reserved 



THE LIBRARY OF 

CONGRESS, 
Two Copies Received 

APR. 11 1901 

Cqpyrwht entry 
CbLt./O, /f o/ 
CLASS ^ XXc N». 

COPY B. 






Copyright, 1901, 
By the MACMILLAN COMPANY. 



XortDootJ i3rc33 

J. S. Gushing & Co. — Berwick & Smith 

Norwood Mass. U.S.A. 



PREFATORY NOTE 

This pamphlet has two ahns : (i)that of placing 
before the instructor certain hints as to method 
which could not appropriately be included in the 
pages of the text-book itself ; and (2) that of gather- 
ing together, for the sake of ready reference, typical 
answers to many of the questions asked in the exer- 
cises. With regard to many of the answers much 
discretion is of course to be allowed. Those given 
in the following pages are, in cases where opinion 
and judgment play a part, simply those which seem 
to me typical, or which I should prefer in my own 
class-room. 

For assistance in the preparation of the pamphlet, 
my thanks are due to Miss Jeannette B. Gillespy, 
Assistant in EngHsh in Barnard College. 

G. R. C. 

February, 1901. 



NOTES FOR TEACHERS OF ENGLISH 
COMPOSITION 



:>>t<c 



Order and Relation of English Studies.— The study 
of English in the high school has two main aims, 
which are to be pursued side by side throughout the 
course : the acquiring on the part of the pupil of the 
ability to use his mother tongue correctly and with 
some facility, for the expression of his own ideas, and 
the acquiring of some knowledge and appreciation of 
his native hterature. Each line of study should begin 
at the very outset of his course, and in one form or 
another should continue until its close. It would not 
be appropriate here to outline a four-year course of 
study in EngUsh Hterature. It is sufficient to call 
attention to the fact that, during the early years of 
the high school period, such a course should naturally 
consist of the reading, at home and in the class-room, 
of such books as experience has shown to be best 
suited to the purpose, under such guidance and in- 
struction from the teacher as will give the pupil the 
soundest knowledge and the most sincere appreciation 
of what he reads ; and that, during the later years, it 



2 Notes for Teachers 

should consist largely of the more intensive study of 
more difficult works, and should be accompanied by 
the study of the main outlines of English and Amer- 
ican literature, or of the more important periods in 
them. The whole time in school devoted to English 
should be at least three periods a week throughout 
the course, and of this time about one-half would 
naturally be devoted to Enghsh literature. 

The other aim of Enghsh study, that of skill in ex- 
pression, may be divided into two parts, oral expres- 
sion and written expression. It is clear that it is for 
the good of the pubHc that all high school pupils 
should, before entering upon the duties of active Hfe, 
learn the proper control of the voice, and should have 
such training in the carriage of the body, and such 
practice in speaking before an audience, as shall make 
it possible for him or her to perform without undue 
embarrassment, and with some adequacy, the simple 
duties of the sort that form a distinct and necessary 
part of social and public life. Some training of this 
kind, wise and progressive teachers are already begin- 
ning to make an essential part of the school course, 
but it does not form a part of the special course now 
under consideration, and the present writer does not 
undertake to say how and when it may best be taught. 
It is perhaps worth while, however, to add that it is 
possible to accomplish a good deal in oral composi- 
tion without making it a separate subject. A little 
care taken in connection with what reading aloud is 
done in the classes in English literature will do much 



Of English Composition 3 

toward teaching good habits of pronunciation and the 
proper management of the voice, and a pupil who is 
informed beforehand that he will be asked at a cer- 
tain recitation to speak for two or three minutes on a 
given topic connected with the lesson of the day, will, 
under sensible guidance, gain almost as much as he 
might from a more formal exercise. Oral composi- 
tion may, moreover, often be made a preliminary to 
written composition throughout the course. Every 
one, old or young, is much more likely to write well 
on a subject when he has previously expressed his 
opinions on the same subject by word of mouth. 

The Plan of a Four-year Course in Composition. — It 
seems to me that the essential end to be secured dur- 
ing the first year in the high school, so far as English 
composition is concerned, is that the pupil should 
gain a clear idea of English syntax, — of the structure 
of the English sentence. For this purpose he usually 
needs a thorough course in English grammar. To 
be sure, it may have been intended that he should 
acquire this knowledge in the elementary school. If 
he has, well and good. He can then spend his time 
to best advantage in work in English Hterature and 
in his other studies. He should, from time to time, 
write short compositions in connection with his work 
in literature or with his other studies, or short trans- 
lations. These should be criticised for correctness 
and sense ; but he is not yet old enough to think 
much, — at least logically and consciously, — and any 
great amount of training in composition, at this stage, 



4 Notes for TcacJiers 

must be of the nature of forcing, and will be more 
likely to harm him than to help him. During his 
first high school year the pupil is still in the period 
when the main duty of his mind is to be storing up 
impressions and facts of many sorts, without reason- 
ing very much about them. It is enough if he can 
form and keep up the habit of writing a few correct 
and sensible sentences every day, in connection with 
some part of his school work, and — say, once a week 
— a slightly longer exercise or simple, informal com- 
position. 

If, on the other hand, the student, in spite of his 
previous training, is not, on entering the high 
school, able intelligently to analyze any ordinary 
EngHsh sentence and to appreciate the relation exist- 
ing between its component parts, he should, in addi- 
tion to his work in literature, have a strong, even if 
rapid, course in English grammar, with special refer- 
ence to parsing and sentence analysis. On this drill 
the results of all his subsequent language-work, in 
foreign languages as well as in English, will probably 
depend. It is true that some teachers of English feel 
that the pupil may acquire his knowledge of English 
grammar through his elementary course in Latin ; 
but I think that it will generally be found that the 
instructor in Latin does not share this belief, and that 
he will urge, on the contrary, that much time and 
effort will be wasted in attempting to teach the gram- 
mar of a foreign language to pupils ignorant of the 
grammar of their own. 



Of English Covipositiott 5 

During the second high school year, the pupil will 
be partly occupied with his course in literature, which 
will consist largely of the study of certain English 
classics ; but this field of study, which in the first year 
was more prominent than English composition, should 
now yield to composition the precedence. By this 
stage, the average pupil is distinctly more mature. 
His logical faculties are beginning to develop. He 
is already more of a young man than a boy, and it is 
time that he began to consider more carefully the 
question of written composition. For such consider- 
ation he has been specifically prepared by his work in 
grammar and his elementary practice in composition 
in the preceding year. 

So far, all teachers are, I believe, agreed. What 
there is less unanimity about is what part rhetoric 
— or, as it is sometimes called, formal rhetoric — 
should play in the composition work of the second 
year. Some teachers would prefer to give considera- 
ble practice in simple essay writing, and to bring out 
incidentally, as it were, the few principles of good 
writing with which it is necessary for the student to 
be familiar, or to develop them inductively from the 
EngHsh classics which are being read in the class in 
literature. On the other hand, pupils of that age 
work more effectively with a text-book than without 
one, and it is wholly natural and proper that this 
should be the case. It seems, too, reasonable, that 
in this, as in other subjects, the principles laid down 
should be arranged and related to each other in an 



6 Notes for Teachers 

orderly and logical manner, so that the pupil's mind 
may be trained by comprehending the subject as 
a system rather than as a bundle of facts. 

The danger of teaching rhetoric by text-book is 
that it be taught badly, that is, in too great detail; 
but against this danger the well-educated and 
experienced teacher has long since learned to be on 
his guard. Though convinced of the futility of the 
old system of studying rhetoric, by which the pupil 
learned by heart a vast number of rules and princi- 
ples that scarcely stood the test of practice or 
investigation in later life, he will also, probably, be 
convinced of the possibility, as well as the practical 
utility, of putting before pupils at this stage of 
their progress a simple exposition of the elementary 
principles of the art of expression, provided that it is 
accompanied, in accordance with modern methods, by 
a thoroughly good set of graded exercises, so that the 
pupil may practise what is preached to him, and 
grow in skill and in real power over his own thoughts 
as well as in mere knowledge. 

In the third high school year, the work in English 
literature, which is by this time of increasing diffi- 
culty, should be allowed again to take the chief place 
in the student's training. Composition work should, 
however, not be discontinued. Short essays should be 
prescribed in connection with the books read or with 
other parts of the student's work. It is still impor- 
tant that the tasks set should not be very hard or 
long. It is not safe to prod the pupil's imagination 



Of English Composition 7 

much, or to require of him writing that demands any- 
thing Uke the logical grasp and logical ability of the 
grown person. It is sufficient that he writes short 
essays regularly and frequently, and that in this 
simple work he expresses himself naturally, without 
blunders in syntax, and with attention to the obvious 
structure of what he writes, both as to sentences and 
as to paragraphs. 

In the fourth year, composition and Hterature will 
hold positions of equal importance. The pupil is 
now ready to undertake tasks of various sorts. The 
more practice he has and the more kinds of writing 
he has practice in, the better it will be for him, pro- 
vided always that he is not asked to make bricks 
without straw. His writing should almost invariably 
bear a direct relation to his reading, his studies, or his 
actual experience. Here, as in the composition work 
of the second year, he will be greatly assisted by the 
use of an elementary text-book, deahng with the 
various kinds of composition. 

Aims and Methods. — The aim of the teacher of 
rhetoric and EngUsh composition is to. help young 
people to realize their own thoughts and to get the 
habit of giving expression to them in clear and 
simple language. The means he has for this task — 
this helping of a boy to secure easily and methodi- 
cally that which he could otherwise acquire only by 
a happy combination of outside influences or by the 
slow maturing of his own intellect and character — 
are two: a modicum of theory and a good deal of 



8 Notes for Teachers * 

practice. The theory must be simple and sound and, 
to be effective, must be approached with the attention 
fixed on the principle involved. No learning by rote 
should be allowed and no undue stress laid on details. 
Each member of the class must master the part of 
the theory under consideration in any given chapter, 
and really make it his own before he goes a step 
further. If the theory is worth teaching at all, it 
must be taught thoroughly. There is no hurry. 
Half the book well taught and actually comprehended 
is far better than the whole book only half understood. 
In reality, the whole theory of rhetoric is very simple. 
It takes considerable time to write it out in full or 
even to explain it in the class-room ; but when, by 
means of illustration and exercise, the student once 
grasps it, it is his forever and appeals to him with the 
force of a self-evident proposition. It is then some- 
thing which can be taken for granted in his further 
work and built upon as a solid foundation. 

The question of the relation between written com- 
position and literature is a perplexing matter, and 
must be solved by each instructor according to his 
own experience and in connection with his own 
methods and general policy. Many successful teachers 
hold that composition should be kept in such close 
relations with the work in literature as to be almost, 
if not quite, a subdivision of it, basing their theory 
on the ground that the works read in the course in 
literature serve naturally, not only as the student's 
inspiration, but as his models. Though it is not to be 



Of English Composition 9 

doubted that appreciative reading will be a constant 
source of inspiration to the student and a natural and 
proper stimulus, it may be objected, on the other 
hand, that masterpieces of literature are scarcely 
normal models for high school students. Master- 
pieces are the work of men, not of boys, — and of 
men of genius at that. The youth can in many 
instances understand and appreciate them, he can be 
stimulated by them, but, even when the masterpiece 
belongs to the period in which he is living, he is rarely 
if ever fitted, physically or psychologically, to treat 
himself a subject of anything like the same sort, in a 
style even remotely similar. A boy is a boy, and to a 
boy belong a boy's subjects and a boy's style. In 
the opinion of the present writer, therefore, it would 
be certainly possible, though scarcely advisable, to 
teach a boy to write thoroughly well without requir- 
ing him to make in any way a study of English litera- 
ture, — perhaps, in an extreme case, without reading 
books at all. Provided that he is supplied with a 
fairly good vocabulary, whether by reading or by con- 
versation, or by both, he can be so trained, during his 
school days, by practice, correction, and criticism, as 
to be able to express his own ideas in a rational and 
sensible manner, precisely as, under good nistruction, 
a boy could learn to draw really well by attempting, 
under such guidance and correction, one tangible object 
after another, without ever having seen or studied 
the work of a great artist. Certainly, by availing 
ourselves of the inspiration that must inevitably come 



I o Notes foi' Teachers 

from the proper reading and study of literature, we 
can give high school students — and, for that matter, 
college students — the very best training in composi- 
tion without letting them stray far away from the 
subjects most suitable to their age and experience. 
It is not, then, in my opinion, wise to attempt to 
correlate too closely the course of study in literature 
and that in composition. The student must depend 
on literature for much of his general stimulus and 
often for specific hints. The subjects for essays may, 
too, frequently be taken from topics in literature just 
as from topics in history. But it should not be for- 
gotten that the main object in view is to train the 
pupil in the art of expressing his own thoughts and 
not those of another, and that this means, in the case 
of a high school pupil, that he must be taught how to 
think consciously and logically, and how to express 
clearly these conscious and logical thoughts. The 
secret of good teaching in this respect lies in letting 
the pupil always feel that he is handling thoughts 
that are genuinely his, or that are essentially of his 
sort, not the thoughts of an older person or of another 
epoch. 

With regard to the correction of essays, the in- 
structor of experience will need no advice, but the 
teacher who is just entering on the duties of his 
profession will, perhaps, be glad of a few hints. 

(i) The reading and correction of essays, and the 
subsequent conferences on them with pupils, form by 
far the most important part of your work. Take 



Of English Composition 1 1 

pains, therefore, to perform such duties with the 
utmost thoroughness. Insist that pupils shall pre- 
sent their manuscripts at the time designated, and in 
the form prescribed. Do not waste your time in 
reading essays on which the pupil has put httle time 
or thought. Mark such essays zero, and it is not 
likely that the pupil will repeat the experiment. 
Insist, so far as possible, that sufficient time be given 
you for reading essays with proper care, and for a 
proper amount of conference on them with students, 
either individually or in small groups. Give to the 
task of reading and correction, so far as possible, 
your best or freshest hours, either early in the morn- 
ing or just after invigorating exercise. The practice 
of reading essays by artificial light, or when jaded, is 
usually injurious, both physically and professionally. 
(2) When reading essays, make yourself as com- 
fortable as possible, and take measures to guard 
yourself against interruption. You are engaged in 
an important professional duty, and it is necessary 
that you should have all your faculties in good work- 
ing order. With regard to each essay, there are two 
things to be considered. First, has the pupil used 
correct English .? Second, has he given to his 
thought full, clear, and well-balanced expression .? 
The best way, as a rule, is to read each essay twice. 
The first reading should be for correctness. Mark 
each error in spelling, punctuation, etc., as you read, 
provided that the errors are of such a kind that 
the pupil can fairly be supposed to be acquainted 



1 2 Notes for TcacJiers 

with the proper form. In the early stages of com- 
position work, be careful not to bewilder the pupil 
by calHng his attention to errors, the consideration 
of which properly belongs to a later stage in his 
training. If there are many errors, the teacher should 
not go further, and the essay should be returned for 
rewriting. 

So far the teacher's task has been largely mechani- 
cal, but he has as yet performed merely his preKmi- 
nary and more elementary office. If, in the case of 
essays which are in the main correctly written, he 
stops here, he is as Hkely to have done harm as good, 
for he has left untouched the most important point, 
— has the pupil got hold of a definite idea and given 
to that idea a sufficiently full, clear, and well-balanced 
expression } If he has, he should be praised. If he 
has not, he should be shown how and why. But this 
should be done, if possible, by word of mouth and not 
by writing. 

In this second reading, then, the teacher's task 
calls for good judgment, an insight into what young 
people may with reason be expected to know, and 
much skill in seizing the hazy thought which the boy 
actually had in mind, and in drawing him on, little by 
little, to see the steps by which that thought can be 
well expressed. Be sure, finally, not to give a high 
mark, under ordinary circumstances, to an essay in 
which the writer has not honestly striven to give 
expression to some real thought of his own. Good 
thinking expressed in incorrect language must not 



Of English Composition 13 

be tolerated, but neither must correct language 
without good thinking. 

(3) There is danger in asking pupils to do too 
much writing. Find out how much they can do 
regularly every week. Insist on their doing their 
work with the greatest care, and hold yourself to the 
same high level in your work of comment and cor- 
rection. A fair amount, carefully done, should be 
the motto on both sides. 

(4) Don't be fussy or finnicky. No two people 
write aUke, and it would be abnormal for a youth 
to have the style of a person of mature years. The 
essential thing is that he shall have an idea, that 
he shall consciously strive to give that idea its best 
expression, and that in the process he shall not have 
overstepped the bounds of correct usage. 

(5) Teachers of rhetoric should feel that, in pro- 
portion as they do their work skilfully, they are 
experts, in precisely the same way and to precisely 
the same degree thai trained teachers of mathematics 
or chemistry are experts. To teach composition well, 
one must have scholarship, cultivation, good judg- 
ment, and ingenuity. 

(6) Teachers of composition are pecuharly prone, 
from the nature of their work, to discouragement and 
irritabiUty. Don't try to do more than you can do 
well ; take plenty of exercise and sleep ; work hard 
while you do work, — and if you have had the proper 
training, you will surely do well. If you find your 
judgment growing confused while you are reading 



14 Notes for Teachers 

essays, stop and take some light exercise for five 
minutes or read an amusing book. 

Books of Reference. — The essential books of refer- 
ence for a high school teacher of rhetoric and compo- 
sition are a small dictionary for rapid use ; a large 
dictionary for more detailed information ; a diction- 
ary of names and places, an encyclopaedia, or some 
equivalent volume ; and the standard works on Eng- 
lish grammar, rhetoric, and composition. The im- 
portant works on grammar are given in the appendix 
to my Principles of English Grammar, and need not 
be repeated here. On rhetoric the teacher will find 
help in the works of Wendell, Scott, and A. S. Hill, 
for general principles ; and of Herrick and Damon 
and Lewis, for suggestions as to details and methods 
of teaching. He will not be helped much by earlier 
writers on rhetoric or by Bain. There is no good 
book on English usage. The volumes of Dean 
Alford, Richard Grant White, and similar writers 
are full of errors and misconceptions, and, unless 
one has had a thorough training in linguistics, are 
likely to do one as much harm as good. 



General Note. — Only exercises which seem to offer special 
difficulty or to need illustration have been taken up. Teachers 
are advised to take a class through as much of each exercise as 
is necessary to produce the desired result, but not through all 
of each exercise. 



Exercise i. — Question 8 is asked to bring out the fact 
that poetry has in common with music the element of rhythm, 



Of English Composition 15 

but that poetry makes use of words, i.e. sounds that have a 
definite meaning, to express ideas and emotions, while music 
makes use of meaningless sounds. If this question, or any- 
other in the set, seems too hard for the class, it can be 
oantted. The object of the first chapter is merely to give 
the teacher a chance to point out to pupils the general 
nature of the study, and it can be passed over as rapidly 
as may be thought necessary. 

Exercise 3. — II. There is so little possibility of doubt or 
error here that it does not seem worth while to reprint the 
sentences with the proper capitalization. 

Exercise 5. — i, 2. See § 21. 3, 4. See § 22. 5. Vulgar. 
6. Sometimes, colloquial; usually, vulgar. 7. See note, 
p. 23. 8. Vulgar (dialect). 9. Anybody else's, anybody's 
else; address, address. 10, 11. See §§ 25, 26. 

Exercise 6. — I. i and 10 are plainly literary; 3, 4, and 
(perhaps) 2, 6, and 7 are colloquial ; the others are vulgar. 

II. The only italicized word that might possibly be classed 
as in good colloquial use is ivage-eai-ner (7), and even that 
is not here properly used ; i.e. we do not say '' Wage-earner 
Smith " for " INIr. Smith or John Smith, a laborer." In some 
localities electric is in fairly good colloquial use, but it is 
scarcely likely to remain so. Hustler (i) is used by intel- 
ligent people sometimes, but only in jest ; i.e. it is slang. 

The advantage derived from this exercise will come from 
the variety of the opinions expressed and the reasons given 
for them. 

Exercise 7. — i. He expatiated at length upon the mer- 
its of his invention. 2. The new regulations will not effect 
the desired result. 3. These stocks have depreciated in 
value. 4. Careful observation enabled us to perceive the 
movement of the bird. 5. This picture is liable to fall and 
break. 6. His style is most finished and elegant. 7. When 
we eliminate personal considerations, the arguments seem to 



1 6 Notes for Teachei's 

be the following. 8. A large party of sightseers is down- 
stairs. 9. Though not a facsimile, the second message is 
a verbal reproduction of the first. 10. He fails most when 
he thinks himself most successful. 11. At last it transpired 
that each one of us had been told the same thing " in confi- 
dence." 12. The real reason for his success is not so 
apparent. 

Exercises. — i. Blundering attempts to restore peace 
only aggravate the feeling of hostility. 2. We have a bal- 
ance on hand of ^53.27. 3. It is impossible to calculate, 
with mathematical precision, the results of such an act. 
4. We claim our proper place among the schools of the 
country. 5. Let us set a definite day for the investigation. 
6. All were anxious to see how the new tenant would de- 
mean himself. 7. The arsenal is a vast depot for all sorts 
of mihtary stores. 8. I don't want the place, and he doesn't 
seem to be anxious to get it. 9. Endorse this check on 
the other end. 10. It is far better always to use first. 
II. When Jim had got the day's supplies, he came back to 
camp. 12. He was one of those people who never know, 
but who can guess brilliantly. 13. Unless you follow the 
guide closely you are liable to lose your way. 14. By mu- 
tual agreement they took Mr. Blank, a common friend, into 
their secret. 15. The question of "good usage" involves 
many a nice distinction. 16. There were three in our party. 
17. It was a season of plenty and prosperity. 18. He posted 
the ledger and then put his books away. 19. I have a plan 
to propose to you. 20. It has really quite stopped raining. 
2 1. Stop at the next house, please ; that is where I am stay- 
ing now. 22. We were not altogether surprised to have 
it transpire that B. himself had been trying to get the 
position. 

Exercise 9. — I. Dwarfs, wharfs or wharves, handker- 
chiefs, thieves, halves, beeves, moneys, valleys, soliloquies. 



Of EnglisJi Composition 17 

yesterdays, follies, genera, strata, phenomena, hangers-on, 
break-downs, forget-me-nots, chiefs-of-police. 

II. Child's children's ; dog's dogs' ; lady's 

ladies' ; man-servant's men-servants' ; man - of- war's 

men-of-war's ; prince's princes' ; princess's 

princesses'. 

III. An hour-and-three-quarters' journey ; the President 
of the United States' salary \^s is too harsh] ; Mr. Howells's 
portrait. 

IV. I. he, I. 2. she. 3. me. 4. him. 6. him or he. 
7. us. 8. us. 9. we. 10. I. II. me. 12. her. 13. me. 
14. her. 15. she. 16. he. 

V. I, 4, II. who. 2, 3, 5, 7, 9, 10, 12. whom. 6. whom, 
who. 8. whom ; colloquially, often, who. 

VI. 3. his. 5. my. i, 2, 4, correct. 

VII. I. A Yale and a Harvard man ; or, a Yale man and 
a Harvard man. 2. The loss of an Atlantic steamer. 3. In 
Brooklyn. 4. The robbery of Smith. 5. You and me. 6. Us 
poor people. 

Exercise 10. — i. Correct. 2. The name of which. 
3. The results of which; less commonly, whose. 

II. I, 2, 3. insert which. 4. correct. 

III. I. a heavy blow on the head, which. 2. as it did; 
a thing which it did. 

IV. I. reports, it, it was; or, report, they, they were. 
2. have. 3. have. 4. them. 5. was, 6. was his friend. 
7. himself, he. 8. it (or omit "in it"). 9. has, its; or, 
have, their. 10. it has. 

Exercise 11. — i. is ; or, resorts are; or, lakes are their 
special resort. 2. is. 3. is. 4. is. 5. announces. 6. was. 
7. was. 8, 9, 10. has. 11. was; or, his safety and theirs 
were. 12. stand. 13. prejudices. 14. was. 15. was. 

Exercise 12. — I. i. succeeded. 2. if you pay; or, if 
you will pay. 3. would. 4. to insist. 5. to be present. 



1 8 Notes for TcacJicrs 

11. I.I know I can do it, but he says that I may not. 
[" May not " is here strictly correct, in the sense of '' am 
not permitted to." As has been pointed out, "may not" 
is, on account of its ambiguity, often replaced by "cannot." 
Here "cannot" would also be ambiguous, and the most 
natural and least ambiguous expression is " must." " May," 
then, keeps, in literary usage, its meaning of permission, 
when that is intended, though in colloquial and vulgar 
usage, can is almost always used in this sense. " May not " 
is less often used with reference to permission, on account 
of its ambiguity, its place being taken by " cannot " and 
"must not."] 2. You cannot raise that weight; it is too 
heavy. 3. You may go if you want to. 

The remainder of the exercise offers no difficulty. 

Exercise 13. — i. lain. 2. May. 3. owner of the 
studio. 4. doesn't. 5. Has either. 6. as good as. 

7. doubt but he, 'or doubt that he . . . to tell you. 

8. Every . . . his ; or, all students . . . their. 9. differ- 
ent from. 10. he, admitted only on certain conditions. 
II. Harold freed himself with a great effort, warded off the 
blow, and escaped unharmed. 12. whom. 13. which is 
built ... or which. 14. as. 15. everyone — he; or, all 
like it . . . they. 16. which. 17. Each ... is. 
18. the paper of Andover. 19. unless. 20. is. 21. differ- 
ent from (omit did). 22. has. 23. Omit ofJicr. 24. To 
understand fully. 25. was. 26. laid. 27. who. 
28. unless. 29. Senator . . . was . . . his seat. 
30. any. 31. sat. 32. phenomenon. '^^. from. 34. L 
35. Omit ^7;/^/. 36. to be. 37. but that ; without asking. 
38. makes. 39. Compare 6. 40. his college. 41. not 
only patronized. 42. a fact which. 43. any one (of 
them). 44. alumna. 45. who. 46. are ... a fact 
which. 47. which; stratum. 48. former . . . present; 
or, monarchies of that time . . . governments of this. 



Of English Composition 19 

49. phenomenon; stratum; history of geology. 50. to 
see . . . doesn't ... in the least to regret (or, to regret in 
the least). 51. was. 52. neither from myself; or, I did 
not . . . eitlier from ... or from ... 53. sons-in-law. 
54. spoonfuls. 55. months'. 56. years'. 57. men's. 
58. the king and the queen. 59. yours. 60. hers. 
61. any. 62. who or that. 63. may. 64. lying. 65. fine. 
66. sweet. 67. took a different way from that which. 
68. doesn't. 69. sad. 70. is. 71. has. 72. awaits. 
73. to say. 74. whomever. 75. me. 76. whom. 
77. me. 78. my. 79. legislature's. 80. whom. 81. bac- 
terium. 82. phenomenon. 83. and a captain. 84. The 
rise in sugar (commercial idiom, rather than of sugar). 
85. hers. 86. the contents of which. 87. badly. 88. beau- 
tiful. 89. May. 90. lay. 91. lying. 92. sit. 93. set. 
94. anything. 95. which was founded . . . and which; 
or, and it presents. 96. Omit <^/^^/. 97. whom. 98. who. 
99. me. 100. was. loi. is. 102. was. 103. his. 
104. would. 105. facts or circumstances which, etc. 

Exercise 14. — Future : i, 4, 6, 9, 10. 

Exercise 15. — See answers to questions in Exercise 14. 

Exercise 16. — i. shall. 2. will. 3. will. 4. shall, 
5. shall. 6. will. 7. shall. 8. shall. 9. will. 10. accord- 
ing to circumstances: will = are you not willing? — 
shall = are you not going to ? 

Exercise 17. — i. shall. 2. will. 3. shall. 4. shall. 
5. shall. 

Exercise 18. — I. Correct: 4, 5, 6, 7, 9. Incorrect: i, 
2, 3, 8, 10. 

II. Correct : 4, 6, 7, 8, 9. Incorrect : i, 2, 3, 5, 10. 

III. Shall, 2, 4, 5, 9, II, 12, 14, 15, 16, 18. Will, 6, 7, 
13. Either, according to circumstances, i, 3, 10, 17, 19. 
Sentence 8 should read. You will (or shall) go, or you will 
be sorry for it. Here, in the first part, the effect of the 



20 Notes for Teachers 

future tense, "you will," is almost precisely equivalent to a 
command, ''you shall ! " 

Exercise 19. — I. Phrases : i, 3, 5, 6. Clauses : 2, 4, 7, 
8, 9. 

II. Phrases. 2. with very pardonable vanity, adverb; 
in New England, adverb ; of the conversation, of thousands, 
adjectives. 7. for it, adverb. 8. to be careful, noun, object 
of advise. 9. to understand you, noun, logical subject of 
is. 

Clauses, i. that . . . there, noun. 2. that . . . thou- 
sands, noun. 3. who hesitates, adjective. 4. that . . . 
described, adjective ; than . . . imagined, adverb. 
5. where I stood, adjective. 6. as . . . on, adverb. 7. If 
... it, adverb. 8. Seeing the hill, adjective. 

Exercise 20 offers no difficulty. 

Exercise 21. — The only sentence presenting any difficulty 
is four. Subject, he ; predicate, was. Predicate adjective- 
phrases, five . . . inches, six . . . inches, modified by the 
adverb exactly, and by the adverb-phrases, in height and in 
circumference. The sentence may be analyzed in other 
ways, but it seems sensible to regard it as similar in con- 
struction to " He was short in the legs and long in the arms." 

Throughout this exercise, the object is to make the pupil 
feel the structural outline of a sentence. Do not allow him 
to waste his time over mere " catches " in parsing. 

Exercise 22 presents no difficulty. 

Exercise 23. — i. Although it has been. 2. Colon after 
obvious. 3. Semicolon before consequently. 4. Colon or 
period after y?^^///. 5. Colon after /^;r^. 6. Colon after 
others ; comma after August; make the clauses at end of 
the sentence parallel in form. 7. Colon after games. 
8. Comma ■dS.lt.x French. 9. With the words, "They," etc. 
10. Semicolon, after woodcJioppers. 11. One sentence, 
comma after room. 12. Imagining . . . man, you obtain, 



Of EnglisJi Composition 21 

etc. Or, if you imagine, you obtain. 13. He is, etc. 
14. Having . . . inquiries, and being unacquainted with 
the results . . . Laplace, I investigated this question with 
my staff. 15. Period after self-evident. Change the to 
their before physical education. 16. Semicolon after exer- 
cise. 17. Supply predicate. 18. That I could lay it down ; 
or — I could not . . . until. 19. Omit being. 20. Two 
sentences; or a colon after scrap. 21. Supply subject 
for enjoyed ; e.g. all. 22. Losing . . . forest, I did not 
reach home until. 23. Omit that. Separate the two 
statements by a semicolon, if the connective and is to be 
understood. 24. If we take (or look at). 25. Semicolon 
after ring ; there are also many . . . etc. Supply verb 
after latter. 26. When he caught. 

Exercise 29. — H. You. See rule (i). 3. Senate (5); 
President (4) ; Secretary of State (4). 4. Fourth Street 
(3). 5. Easter (3). 6. Republican (3). 7. South, West 
(3). 9. King (4). Tuesday (3). 

Exercise 30. — The treatment of the sentences is suffi- 
ciently indicated by the rewritten form of the first sentence. 
In some of them it may be hard to see what the original 
writer meant. In such cases the pupil should be allowed 
much latitude in his answers. It is almost impossible to 
get together many sentences of this kind without including 
a few that will seem to some students obscure. The pupil 
should be encouraged, in all such w^ork, to plunge boldly 
ahead, taking for granted the meaning that seems most 
obvious. He should make sure, too, that every sentence he 
writes as an answer is clear and fairly short. 

Exercise 31. — This exercise — or rather as much of it 
as may be found necessary — is a valuable one for most 
pupils. They should not leave it until they feel sure of 
being able to think and write in short sentences. It will 
scarcely be necessary here, however, to give specimen 



22 Notes for Teachers 

versions of the sentences, few or none of which offer any 
special difficulty. 

Exercise 33. — i. Loose. 2. Loose after "on." 

3, 4. 4 has no finite verb and is really a part of 3. There 
should be a colon after historic, in which case the sen- 
tence would be loose at that point. 5. Loose. 6. Loose, 
unless the phrase "vanished from sight" be considered, as 
it is in practical use, a single expression. 7. Loose. 8. First 
member, periodic ; second, periodic ; third, loose. 9. Loose. 
10. Loose. II. Loose. 12. Loose. 13. Loose. 14. First 
member, loose; second, periodic to "fire." 15. Periodic. 
16. Loose. 17. Loose. 18. Loose. 19. Periodic. 
(Grammatically loose after "bereft"; in sense, periodic.) 
20. Loose. 21. Loose. 22. First member, periodic ; sec- 
ond, loose. 23. First member, periodic ; second, periodic. 
24. Loose. 25. Loose. 26. Loose. 27. Loose. 28. Loose. 
29. Loose. 30. Both members periodic. 31. Loose. 
32. Loose; both members periodic. 

The pupil should note that every compound sentence 
must be loose. Its component members may be either 
loose or periodic. 

Exercise 34. — L Most of the sentences can be readily 
made completely periodic, with little or no change in the 
meaning. A few cannot well be made more than essentially 
periodic — periodic almost to the last moment. The first 
four are given below, in periodic form, as examples : — 

I. Knowing that we must make alone the remainder of 
the journey, after the second night at Goliad, Benjamin and 
I set out. 2. Just in time to avoid "absence without 
leave," we reached Corpus Christi. 3. During . . . 
San Patricio, we met not even an Lidian. 4. In our 
absence of three weeks, a new settlement, induced . . . 
Indians, had been started. 

II. The reverse process does not need illustration. 



Of English Composition 23 

Exercise 36. — The following are the words at which the 
sentences cease to be periodic. i. to advance. 2. came 
on. 3. was pulled. 4. was given. 5. staggered. 6. the 
view. 7. their ground. 8. advanced. 10. a run. 
II. dashed along. 12. quick. 

Exercise 38. — Reconstructions of the first five sentences 
are given below, as examples : — 

I. People who prefer to stay in the house and take life 
easy would not, unless they were forced, think of going into a 
gymnasium or taking regular exercise in other ways. 2. We 
begin to study about the first of October, and work pretty 
hard until Christmas. By that time our brains and eyes are 
both tired and we need a vacation. 3. Perhaps, if he could 
. . . destiny, he might have . . . master. Since there 
were no works of art to imitate nor rules to follow, 
he might have at least been original. 4. Yesterday was as 
bright and warm as one could wish. In fact, it reminded 
one very much of spring, for the frost was coming out of 
the ground, and the walking was exceptionally muddy. 
5. In order to preserve their health, it is absolutely neces- 
sary . . . day. Is not . . . life? 

Exercise 40. — III. i. Perseverance, stability, and quick- 
ness of thought. 2. Less troublesome, less expensive, and 
much more swift. 3. The walk, twice a day, of a few short 
blocks to school, and the games, etc. 4. Drawn by horses, 
badly lighted by kerosene lamps, poorly heated by stoves 
. . . car and, in short, were extremely uncomfortable. 
5. Progress ... is aided. 6. Have visible effect in . . . 
and in their crazy actions. 7. On one side, the ocean ... on 
the other, high sandbanks ; or, with the ocean . . , on one 
side and high sandbanks on the other. 8. And then to die. 
9. Hoping that he might be able. 10. Which is published. 
I r. And that we so quickly forget. 12. And that he should 
limit. 13. Swiftly, noiselessly, and deftly. 14. Thinking 



24 Notes for Tcac Iters 

. . . house, and expecting. 15. One of the girls running 
down the street was heard to call. 

Exercise 42. — 11. "It was an evil hour for Canada, when, 
on the twenty-eighth of May, 1609, Samuel de Champlain, 
impelled by his own adventurous spirit, departed from the 
hamlet of Quebec to follow a war-party of Algonquins against 
their hated enemy, the Iroquois. Ascending the Sorel, and 
passing the rapids at Chambly, he embarked on the lake 
which bears his name, and with two French attendants 
steered southward with his savage associates, toward the 
rocky promontory of Ticonderoga. They moved with all 
the precaution of Indian warfare ; when, at length, as night 
was closing in, they descried a band of the Iroquois in their 
large canoes of elm bark approaching through the gloom. 
Wild yells from either side announced the mutual discovery. 
The Iroquois hastened to the shore, and all night long the 
forest resounded with their discordant war-songs and fierce 
whoops of defiance. Day dawned, and the fight began. 
Bounding from tree to tree, the Iroquois pressed forward to 
the attack ; but when Champlain advanced from among the 
Algonquins, and stood full in sight before them, with his 
strange attire, his shining breastplate, and features unlike 
their own, — when they saw the flash of his arquebuse, and 
beheld two of their chiefs fall dead, — they could not con- 
tain their terror, but fled for shelter into the depths of the 
wood. The Algonquins pursued, slaying many in the 
flight, and the victory was complete." 

Exercise 43. — i. Last clause: here all are young and 
happy. 2. Partly from force of habit, partly from the wish 
... he still went to the post-office every day. 3. His own 
failure and his rival's triumph. 4. He knows . . . ; yet 
he returns, etc. 5. The foregoing is the smallest part of 
the photographic work ; for the developing and printing 
of the picture are the slowest and most difficult part of the 



Of English Composition 25 

operation. 6. At no time, least of all in time of danger, is 
it best to be dependent on any one. Especially is this true 
in the case of shipwreck. Then the man who cannot swim 
is forced to wait for help from others, and, as the proverb 
says, he who hesitates is lost. 7. Though the great con- 
queror knows not why he strives, his ambition, etc. 8. Silas 
Marner was much bent, and had prominent, short-sighted 
brown eyes. 9. And that, however slight they may be. 
10. And, while he smoked . . . and sipped, etc. 11. Though 
we had not long to talk, this and much more he told of the 
beginning and of the proportions to which. 12. The bam- 
boo is used in a variety of ways — for building material, for 
cooking utensils, for food, for rope, and for many other 
things. 13. He was popular enough, for he was a taking 
fellow — young, good-looking, and rich. 14. Science, phi- 
losophy. 15. Aside from exercise and enjoyment as reasons 
for learning to swim, there is still something to be consid- 
ered : though the art may be necessary for you but once, 
that once it may save your life. 

Exercise 44. — Though apparently difficult to the begin- 
ner, these sentences call for no special comment. Unity will 
be secured, in almost all cases, by breaking up a long and 
rambling sentence. Two of the reconstructed sentences 
are given below for illustration. 

I. It was the funeral of an old man. Once, as his noble 
face showed, he had been great ; but . . . 2. Then all began 
teasing them and telling each other to hit them. The people 
called for Beelzebub, the head man of the fair; and he, 
coming quickly, . . . taunt them. While all this was being 
done, Beelzebub sat looking at them and laughing. 

Exercise 45. — Particularly at this stage, intricate or mal- 
formed sentences of this sort present little difficulty. A 
reconstruction of the first sentence only is given, for purposes 
of illustration ; — • 



26 Notes for TcacJicrs 

I. A deep sense of obligation to my country, and a 
realization of my duty as an American to defend . . . 
affairs. Of this I first obtained a copy, with difficulty, on 
Saturday, etc. 

Exercise 46. — i. For more important than the national 
election is this local election, which will show whether. 

2. At last, he was found by his father in. 3. Judging from 
this, I think it would have been much more advisable 
to buy the new site for Columbia in some other part of 
the state, — say, . . . Island — where land is less costly. 
4. What fun they would have, for instance, when the wind 
. . . morning, in keeping their dignified bearing and in 
properly adjusting their caps and gowns. 5. Crazed by 
the heat, and no . . . Russians, they rushed down into the 
lake. 6. As the latest calculation is . . . ways, he urged 
that a new one be made. 

Exercise 47. — i. There is nothing strikingly wTong about 
this sentence, but it is queer to find the phrase " by a sort 
of ladder" so far away from '' climbed " and apparently 
connected with the clause "which . . . anchor." 2. A 
war-ship . . . world, built for purposes of destruction, but 
containing everything for the welfare of its occupants. The 
clause "which . . . accord" seems to have nothing to do 
with the matter, and is hence a cause of incoherence. 

3. Some plan must be agreed on for the decision of ques- 
tions of jurisdiction that. 4. When . . . student is not 
only healthy, but also agile and graceful. 5. If . . . neces- 
sity of voting down not only. 6. In . . . are helping 
neither. 7. At a dinner, given . . . publishers, to famous 
. . . destruction, I met. 8. It is . . . necessary, as it has 
been in the past, to instruct. 9. A very promising . . . 
candidates are trying for the Freshman and the University 
crews. 10. Theseus . . . home with his wife after. 

Exercise 48. — i. He . . . water, and I assented. '2. The 



Of English Composition IJ 

Mei'rimac was stripped . . . machinery, and two torpedoes, 
which . . . ship, were . . . hull. 3. Here were mess-tables, 
made of long planks, etc. 4. A few . . , ten. This shows 
. . . trade. 5. There is nothing radically wrong in this 
sentence, but which might be taken as referring to snakes, 
with the result of producing nonsense. It would be better 
to change the construction in some such way as this : No 
persuasion could diminish his wife's deadly fear of snakes. 
6. it should buy. 7. its pride. 8. and this she always did. 

9. // refers grammatically to semblance, as the sentence 
reads, but that makes nonsense. 10. False reference of it. 

Exercise 49. — i. Make the construction parallel. In 
. . . prosper and that the great . . . are condemned to 
struggle. 2. In answer to . . . beef, we beg to reply 
that we first. 3. As to your question regarding the use 
of foreign . . . scraps in putting . . . meat, we must as- 
sert that. 4. As this . . . watched, she very slowly left. 
5. In . . . uncertainty. Hence, money . . . invested, busi- 
ness , . . transacted, and men. 6. The . . . floor, and 
takes . . . oval ; the other half is given up. 7. One . . . 
avenue, I was. 8. As the time is short, I will. 9. News- 
paper editors thought that . . . press ; politicians, that. 

10. He had ... for its mistress, and had . . . purpose 
of secreting himself there, and rifling. 11. The school is 
near to the station and hence easy. 12. Having . . . 
Cuba, the Admiral understood it to be his duty. 13. My 
. . . was too strong for him, and after his marriage to her, 
he. 14. The fact that the athletic grounds are. 15. The 
result aimed at was not only that England should become 
. . . world, but that. 16. The . . . hides from the Baltic 
regions and pitch and fish from Norway. 

Exercise 50. — i. Since she had small means and too . . . 
assistance, she. 2. At best the sentence scarcely makes 
sense, but it comes nearer doing so if we transpose " with 



58 Notes for Teacher's 

. . . additions " to the end of the sentence. 3. The 
psahiis . . . antiquity ; but in the opera music has been 
degraded. 4. After . . . told him, in manner . . . pohte, 
that his poem . . . publishing, he had to publish it himself. 
5. Break into three sentences and reconstruct. 6. Make 
into one sentence. 7. Change as to for, and make the 
remaining clauses parallel. 8. Supply verb in second sen- 
tence. 9. Break up. 10. Break up. 11. Only the first 
two. 12. Lent me not only. 13. A few . . . dignity. 
Among these. 14. Change position of last phrase. 

15. But spent. 16. That I saw him. 17. Break up and 
reconstruct. 18. Henry . . . buoy, and strenuously 
advocated. 

Exercise 51. — II. (^^) Repetition of s;w7C'. {I)) wo?-ds. 
{c) that. 

Exercise 52. — This exercise is one of the most valuable 
in the book for the inexperienced writer, but it presents no 
unusual difficulties! The first five passages are given below, 
in a shorter form, for purposes of illustration : — 

I. What . . . will be is doubtful, but it is clear that the 
conference. 2. England ha.s been jusUy acknowledged . . . 
ocean. 3. After long weeks of waiting, the Spanish . . . 
forth on a fiercely hot day in the early part of July. 4. The 
Confederacy had been successful on the sea, and the intro- 
duction of the Merrimac had almost turned the fortunes of 
the South. Hitherto . . . wood. The Merrimac, with 
. . . iron, was . . . invincible. It destroyed . . . do. 
5. Costly works. 

Exercise 53. — An expansion of the first passage is in- 
serted, for purposes of illustration : — 

I. The colonies were in a state ripe for freedom. During 
the long French and Indian wars, while exposed both by 
land and by sea to invasion by one great European power, 
they may well have been glad to remain under the protection 



of EiiglisJi Composition 29 

of another. But the wars were now over and the colonies 
were in no need of military assistance. They had, more- 
over, been consistently neglected by England, who had 
given no thought to the building up of their commerce or 
their industries, and whose policy seemed to be merely to 
secure from them whatever sums she could by indirect tax- 
ation. The government in many of the colonies, finally, was 
already largely popular in character and needed little to 
become absolutely so. 

Exercise 54. — I. The only words of Latin origin worth 
calling attention to are diabolic, nature, pusillanimous, vile, 
fantastic. They might be replaced by fiendish {devilish 
came originally from the same source as diabolic, but was 
introduced at a very early date through Christianity, and 
has been so assimilated in form as to seem of native origin), 
hea7't, cowardly, low, shadoioy, 

II. Such common names, especially those of tools and 
implements not recently invented, are almost entirely Anglo- 
Saxon. The names of the parts of speech are of Latin ori- 
gin, as might be expected from the fact that Latin was in 
early days the language of learning in all forms. 

Exercise 55. — The second sentence is rewritten as an 
illustration : 2. John L. Sullivan, the prize-fighter, now on 
the stage, was given a large reception last night in Lynn. 

Exercise 64. — 11. Ill-proportioned; the introduction 
takes up almost all the space. 

III. Specific words. Periodic sentences. 

V. Slang expressions are ^iiostly metaphors. They owe 
their effect to the shock given to the mind by the apparent 
incongruity of the implied comparison. They are appro- 
priate where jocose language is appropriate and not else- 
where. 



ELEMENTS OF RHETORIC AND 
ENGLISH COMPOSITION. 

FIRST HIGH SCHOOL COURSE. 
By GEORGE R. CARPENTER, 

Columbia U^iiversity. 

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A BRIEF HISTORY OF THE 
ENGLISH LANGUAGE. 

By OLIVER FARRAR EMERSON., A.M., Ph.D., 

Professor of Rhetoric aud English Philology in IFesieru Reserve 
University. 

12mo. Cloth. $1.00, net. 



The Dial : — This book is marked by the same excellences as his 
longer work on the same subject, published less than two years ago. 
. . . One of the noticeable features of the book is the stress laid upon 
spoken language as a factor in shaping Enghsh, past and present ; and 
this, in the hands of an enthusiastic and skilful teacher, may be made 
the means of original work on the part of students. 

The Citizen: — Professor Emerson's work is scholarly, his style 
pleasing, and his presentation clear. It is to be hoped that this book 
will be an effective means in giving the students of the high school an 
exact understanding of the history of their native speech. 

Evening Post : — We know of no book on this difficult and impor- 
tant subject which can with confidence be put into the hands of begin- 
ners. It is also to be heartily recommended to that large class of 
mature readers who wish to get an accurate knowledge of the history 
of our mother tongue, but have scanty leisure, and are frightened by 
technicalities. 



THE MACMILLAN COMPANY, 

6(5 FIFTH AVENUE, NEW YORK. 



A FIRST BOOK IN WRITING ENGLISH. 

By EDWIN HERBERT LEWIS, Ph.D., 

Associate Professor of English in Lewis Institute and in the 
University of Chicago, 

12mo. Buckram. Price 80 cents. 



Albert H. Smyth, Central High School, Philadelphia: — " I have read it care- 
fully and am much pleased with the way the work has been done. It is careful, 
thoughtful, and clearly arranged. The quotations are apt and judiciously selected. 
It is the best book of its size and scope that I am acquainted with." 

Miss G. W. Hubbell, Oberlin Academy: — "I am delighted with it. It comes 
nearer being the book I want than any I have seen. I shall adopt it into my Com- 
position classes this fall." 

Professor A. E. Lang, J'ictoria University: — " I know of nothing else that is 
quite so good, either in plan or execution, and I should like to see the book placed in 
the High Schools and Collegiate Institutes throughout Ontario." 

Josephine Henderson, State Normal School, Oshkosh, IVis.: — "It is simple 
and to the point. It seems to me a most suggestive book to teachers who are not 
specialists in English. I shall take pleasure in recommending this work to my 
students who will teach in the higher grades or in the High School." 

Miss Agnes J. Kirkwood, Albert Lea College, Albert Lea, Minn.: — " I have 
introduced Dr. Lewis's First Book in Writing EngUsh into my preparatory classes in 
Rhetoric and I find it very helpful. It is clear, and so suggestive and interesting as to 
make the use of it in the class room a pleasure." 

Professor C. M. Brink, Kalajnazoo, I\Iich.: — "\{ all students in our secondary 
schools should be given a thorough course in this book, we should have less reason to 
complain of the poor preparation in English manifested by so many of those that 
enter our colleges." 

Professor Robert Herrick, Unii'ersity of Chicago, Chicago, III.: — " I take great 
pleasure in saying that I think the book shows sound sense, pedagogical ability, and 
learning." 

Superintendent B. B. Jackson, Ashlafid, IFis.: — " It is not above the capacity 
and development of the pupil of the first year in the secondary school, as most of the 
books in English are. It is a pleasing book in every way, and I believe will tend to 
make work in English interesting and delightful." 



AN INTRODUCTION TO THE STUDY 
OF LITERATURE. 

FOR THE USE OF SECONDARY AND GRADED SCHOOLS. 
By EDWIN HERBERT LEWIS, Ph.D., 

Associate Professor of English in Lewis Institute and in the 
University of Chicago. 

12mo. Cloth. Price $1.00. 



School Journal: — It is a collection of lyrics, ballads, and short stories for children 
of the higher grades. The topics under which the selections are arranged have an 
order that follows the development of the interests during adolescence. The ex- 
tracts themselves are admirable. It is refreshing to find, side by side with the master- 
pieces that every boy used to declaim, some of the fine things of Walt Whitman, 
Kipling, Stevenson. Conan Doyle, and Gerald Massey. 

Milwaukee Sentinel: — The selections have been made with commendable judg- 
ment and taste, having reference not only to intrinsic worth, but to the healthy inter- 
ests of youth. A glance at the introduction will show that the collection has been 
founded on sound principles, another glance at the contents will show that the result 
is a choice body of literature. 

THE MACMILLAN COMPANY, 

66 FIFTH AVENUE, NEW YORK. 



Elements of Rhetoric and English 
Composition 

FIRST AND SECOND HIGH SCHOOL COURSES 
By GEORGE R. CARPENTER 

Professor of Rhetoric and English Composition in Columbia University 

First High School Course = = Cloth, i2mo, 60 cents, net 
Second High School Course = Cloth, i2mo, 50 cents, net 



These volumes are based on the following fundamental principles : -^ 

1. That the same training should be given pupils who go to college 
and pupils who do not. 

2. That the formal study of rhetoric and composition should be be- 
gun not later than the second year of the four year high school course, 
and continued for at least two years. 

3. That during the first of these two courses pupils should be trained 
in the choice of words and the structure of sentences and paragraphs; 
that during the second course they should be briefly trained in the 
main principles of exposition, narration, description, and (perhaps) 
argument. 

4. That during both courses care should be taken that pupils under- 
stand thoroughly a few main principles and that they have abundant 
practice in applying them ; that stress be laid on correctness; clearness, 
directness, and simplicity of style, and that correctness be regarded 
from a liberal point of view, basing it on the actual practice of educatad 
and cultivated Americans in speech and writing. 



THE MACMILLAN COMPANY 

66 FIFTH AVENUE, NEW YORK. 

BOSTON CHICAGO SAN FRANCISCO 

Tremont Building 215-221 Wabash Avenue 319-325 Sansome Street 



Principles of English Grammar 

FOR THE USE OF SCHOOLS 
By GEORGE R. CARPENTER 

Professor of Rhetoric and English Coviposition in Columbia University 

i2mo. Half Leather. 75 cents, net 

Professor Robert Herrick, Chicago University : 

" I have had occasion recently to examine a number of new gram- 
mars prepared for secondary schools, and of all that I have seen Pro- 
fessor Carpenter's is the only one which I should care to teach or to 
recommend to teachers." 



Studies in Structure and Style 

BASED ON SEVEN MODERN ENGLISH ESSAYS 
By W. T. BREWSTER, A.M. 

Tutor in Rhetoric and English Composition in Colu7nbia University 

With an Introduction by George R. Carpenter, Professor of Rhetoric 
and English Composition, in Columbia University. 

i2mo. Cloth. $i.io, net 

Boston Daily Advertiser : 

"The author has used rare discrimination in selecting the essays 
which he discusses, insisting that they should be of the highest class of 
modern literature, and that they should serve as models to the student. 
The analysis of structure and style in these volumes is most able, and 
the book will be found a most valuable one as a text in the higher 
American institutions of learning." 

The Beacon (Boston) : 

" Professor Brewster's manual is intelligently planned, and the selec- 
tions made are admirable. . . . The advantages which such a work 
possesses over the old-fashioned text-book of rhetoric are too obvious 
to require comment." 



THE MACMILLAN COMPANY 

66 FIFTH AVENUE, NEW YORK 

BOSTON CHICAGO SAN FRANCISCO 

Tremont Building 215-221 Wabash Avenue 319-325 Sansome Street 



Apr-i^2 ifeOl (AA I) 



APR 11 1901 



LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 



019 747 504 3 



